The snow and wind also turned up for the Vinification
Experience Days on the first weekend of February, but
fortunately the programme was to spend most of the day inside. The
aim of the Vinification Experience Days is to learn about the
process of fermenting and ageing wine from the time of harvest up until
the time when the wine is finally ready to be bottled

And so after a nice warm coffee, the day started with a workshop
led by Yvette Chapelle to develop the senses used when tasting
wine, notably our sense of smell in identifying the aromas that
can be found in wine.

We first tried to name some of the primary fruity and floral
aromas that are characteristic of different grape varietals, and
then we had a go at identifying some of the tertiary aromas such
as grilled almonds and toast that are indications of a wine that
has been aged in oak barrels. We then participated in a second
test to recognise sweet, saline, bitter and acidic tastes. This
also enabled us to have a look at the machinery used in the room
where the bottles are cleaned and the labels stuck onto the
bottles. Jean-François Chapelle and Yannick Jacrot then took us
into the fermentation hall to talk about the work carried out
there during and immediately following the harvest.

We then went down into the magnificent cellar; and tasted some of
the 2014 wines direct from the barrels. This enabled us to
compare different wines that are still in the ageing process, and
to put our new found wine tasting skills to the test!

Back in the fermentation hall, we started to taste some of the
finished wines from the estate. To start, a Santenay 2013 village
white wine, accompanied by a few gougères, a local savoury
delicacy. We then continued the wine tasting with some of the red
wine wines during lunch.

To kick off the afternoon activities, we took a short stroll to
the Clos des Cornières vineyard, where our adopted vines are to
be found. It also gave us the opportunity to learn learn a little
more about the local geology and the different appellations of
Burgundy, Regional, Village, Premier Cru and Grand Cru.

Despite the icy wind that blew over the Côte de Beaune on this
particular weekend, we braved the elements to take a look at our
vines and to note that they seem to be doing fine prior to being
pruned in the coming weeks.

The day finished with a tasting of the 2014 Clos des Cornières
wines that are ageing in oak barrels, quietly lying in the
cellar. The Clos de Cornières vineyard is made up of three
distinct areas, which are refered to as the park, young and old,
and we were able to taste the difference in each of the wines
before they will be blended together closer to the time of
bottling. Many thanks to Domaine
Chapelle for their welcome and for enabling us to discover a
little more about the art of making wine in Burgundy.